Nerdy Love
by XxSephFanxX
Summary: Cloud is head over heels for a certain silver-haired General at ShinRa, who happens to be his new math teacher. And is it just his imagination, or is Sephiroth returning the interest? SephxCloud


**Here's yet another SephxCloud for you all! ^^ This is one of the ones I've been promising for months now.**

**So here's the deal with this one: It's not the chapter fic I've been promising, but I've turned it into one since it's gotten so massive. I'm guessing this one will have 2-3 more chapters added to it.**

**DISCLAIMER: I still do not, nor have ever, owned FFVII.**

**WARNINGS: SephxCloud, Angeal OOC, the usual, blah blah blah.**

* * *

Of all people, Cloud Strife would be the first to admit it.

He was a complete and utter math nerd.

For as long as he could remember, he had always gotten straight A's in all of his math classes. Numbers, fractions, and all that fun stuff just came naturally to him. While his fellow classmates moaned and complained about any amount of work they had to do, Cloud was busy scribbling down notes and following along in class like he was getting paid for it. He was completely unashamed to admit that his math textbook was one of his favorite books.

But, as strange as it was, Cloud really didn't care for any of his other classes. Well, except for his physical education and combat classes. Who didn't love to beat the living crap out of their classmates? But his other academic classes were where things started to go south. Not that his grades were bad – he was pulling a GPA average that any top-level college would kill to have – but, in terms of his interest, Cloud couldn't really care less. Science didn't seem all that fascinating to him, even though his teacher preached to the class like it was the greatest thing they'd ever learn. History was boring – who cared about what a bunch of people did hundreds of years ago? Not him. And English? Oh, god. English could go to hell for all he cared. His teacher must have assigned them the most boring books in print for them to read this semester. As soon as he was finished the class, Cloud was setting fire to his copy of _Loveless_.

The worst part was the unfortunate luck Cloud had had during the whole scheduling process. He had gotten the short end of the stick; his least favorite classes were in the first half of day, which took him a hell of a lot of motivating to roll out of bed in the morning. And, much to his displeasure, the math course he was taking now was so easy that he didn't even enjoy it. Someone at the ShinRa offices had screwed up big time and stuck Cloud in the wrong class. Trigonometry? Yawn. He had been there, done that. He could literally sleep through class and ace every quiz and test thrown at him without even opening the book.

But, in the midst of his scheduling hell, there was indeed a light at the end of the tunnel. After about a month, he had finally talked things over with his teacher, who, not without some difficulty, had managed to switch him into a higher, advanced level math. According to his new, freshly-printed-out schedule (did they really _have _to give him another copy? A Post-It note would have done the job - he was only switching one class), Cloud was officially starting Complex Statistical Analysis. His math-nerd self had been jumping for joy all day long. Heck, he had even gone out the night before and bought himself a brand-spanking-new, state of the art graphing calculator just for the occasion. Once the second period bell had rung, Cloud had sprung out of his seat and dashed out to the hallway faster than a crazed shopper at a super sale.

Mind boggling, headache-inducing, super-advanced math, here he came!

He hurried down the hallway, books cradled in his arms and schedule in hand, as he searched for his new classroom, which was a feat in itself. The Academy building was one of the most confusing places he'd ever been. He would probably have an easier time finding his way through a 100 acre corn maze. His school was a hopeless mess of winding, confusing hallways, with cramped and equally perplexing stairwells, some of which went literally nowhere. And to make things even more confusing as hell, the directional signs on the walls didn't even point to the right hallways. Cloud hadn't been too far off the mark when he had guessed that ShinRa had hired the cheapest contractors available to build the Academy.

Cloud pushed his black-rimmed glasses further up his nose as he turned the corner, still trying to locate his new classroom. C328 had to be around there _somewhere_. He didn't recognize the teacher's name on the schedule, but was keeping an eye out for a name plaque on one of the classroom doors.

He then looked across the hallway and noticed a somewhat empty classroom that had a colorful banner stating "MATH IS FUN" above the doorway, which Cloud couldn't have agreed more with. On closer inspection, he realized that this was indeed C328. After double-checking his schedule quickly, Cloud raced inside, eager to get started. But what he found inside was enough to momentarily put the math-related excitement out of his head.

General Sephiroth sat at the desk in the corner, resting his head casually on his hand, his silver hair spilling over his shoulders. He wasn't in his usual leather jacket and thigh-high boots ensemble; instead, the man was wearing a black button-down shirt and non-leather pants for a change.

Cloud stood frozen in the doorway, mesmerized by the man's beauty.

That had definitely _not_ been in the course description.

As if sensing the blond's gaze, Sephiroth looked up from his desk and over to the doorway. The man's bright emerald eyes held Cloud in a trance, and it was all he could focus on.

"You must be Cloud Strife," the silver-haired man smiled, pushing himself up from his chair. Cloud nodded slowly, and then glanced back down at his schedule. This…_was _the right classroom, right?

Sephiroth seemed to sense the Cadet's confusion. "I am the substitute teacher for this semester." Then the General gave a smile, and Cloud thought he was going to faint. "Welcome to Complex Statistical Analysis."

"T-thank you, sir," Cloud squeaked out, feeling a blush begin to creep over his cheeks. He was still in shock that the gorgeous man was going to be – well, _was_ his teacher.

"Your seat is right there," the General pointed out Cloud's new desk before the Cadet even had a chance to ask. "Let me get you a textbook and the notes you've missed." Sephiroth pushed himself from up from his chair and made his way over to the cabinets in the back while Cloud slowly shuffled into the room. There were several students in the room already, but none that he recognized; then again, not many people in his year were as mathematically inclined as he was.

Cloud plopped his books on his desk and began getting his things out for class while Sephiroth rummaged through the stacks of books in the cabinet.

By the time the blond had set his things up on his desk, Sephiroth appeared in front of him with a textbook and a pile of notes.

"Write your name and year here," the General instructed, flipping the book open and pointing to the other side of the front cover. Cloud nodded and did as he was told. "And here are the notes you'll need to catch up," Sephiroth explained as he handed a mountain of papers to the Cadet, "and the course syllabus. Please let me know if you need any help catching up on what you've missed. Follow along as best as you can today, and then once you study these notes, it will make more sense."

"Thank you, sir," Cloud replied as he stared up at the General, mesmerized by the man's presence. He watched as the silver haired man turned around and headed back to his desk to prepare for today's class. Cloud didn't realize he was staring so much – but how could he not?

Cloud's eyes then wandered to the man's desk, which had books and papers stacked all over it in neat little piles. He had heard Zack talk about Sephiroth's obsessive need for keeping everything neat and organized, but had never seen it for himself. The man even sorted his paper clips by color! And next to them was the biggest bottle of hand sanitizer Cloud had ever seen. He hadn't imagined the man to be a germ freak. Then again, it _was _flu season.

"Everyone, please take your seat." Cloud had been zoning out for so long that he hadn't even heard the bell ring. Sephiroth stood in front of the class, straightening his notes and glaring at the students who were trying to sneak in late. Cloud straightened up in his seat and opened his notebook, ready to begin.

Miraculously, Sephiroth hadn't pointed out the new addition to the class for the other students, much to Cloud's relief. It's not like anyone would have given a damn, either – the General had everyone taking so many notes that they rarely looked anywhere except up at the board. Questions were hardly ever asked; whereas most teachers encouraged students to ask questions, Sephiroth saw it as a sign of weakness, which was evident in his tone as he answered his students. Cloud found this to be a bit odd, but he was nevertheless head-over-heels in love with the man.

Cloud tried hard to pay close attention during the class. He really, _truly_ did. But every once in a while, as he furiously copied down pages of formulas and equations, he found his gaze wander over to the General and his writing begin to slow as he watched the beautiful silver haired man conduct his class. But just before his eyes would begin to glaze over, Cloud snapped out of his Sephiroth-induced stupor and had to scribble down notes twice as fast to catch up before the slide would change. His hand had begun to cramp from the relentless note copying, and he could feel what was probably Carpal Tunnel Syndrome starting up in his wrist as he kept up with the slides. But if that's what he had to do in order to sneak glances at his beloved, then it was well worth it.

When the bell rang at the end of class, Cloud was surprised – time had passed much quicker than he had anticipated. A sigh of relief echoed throughout the room from the students as the note-taking was finally finished for the day.

"Strife, I'd like to speak with you for a moment."

Cloud nearly flipped his desk over as Sephiroth seemingly appeared out of thin air in front of him.

"Yes, sir?" He replied, his voice an octave higher than usual.

The General adjusted his glasses, which Cloud found somewhat sexy, in an odd sort of way.

"I was thinking it would be more beneficial to you if I helped you catch up on what you've missed. Do you have any study halls during the day?"

Cloud thought for a moment. "Eighth period, sir."

Sephiroth blinked in surprise. "Really? That will work out perfectly, then. I have no classes during that time. Why don't you come down during your study hall, and I'll help you get caught up."

Cloud couldn't believe it. One-on-one time with the General? "Yes, sir. That would really help."

Sephiroth brushed his hair over his shoulder gracefully. "Let me give you a pass. Wait a moment." The man walked over to his desk and returned with a hall pass. "Just show this to your teacher and they'll let you come here. And if they don't, have them call me and I'll straighten it out. Okay?"

"Yes, sir," Cloud nodded as the older man handed him the hall pass. He immediately understood why a teacher would second-guess the pass – other than a giant 'S' at the beginning, Sephiroth's signature was an unintelligible scribble along with a nearly indecipherable room number scrawled at the top. Penmanship was definitely not one of the man's strong suits.

"Good," the General gave a small smile, which made the blond's cheeks burn with a rosy glow. "I'll see you eighth period, then."

"T-thank you, sir. I'll be there," Cloud replied, desperately trying to control his trembling voice. Once he gathered up his books and left the classroom, he couldn't help but giggle in excitement for the upcoming weeks.

And just when he'd been sure that math class couldn't get any better.

* * *

"Sooo," Zack took his usual seat in between Angeal and Cloud at the lunch table, "How was day one of Killer Math with Seph?"

"It was pretty good," Cloud replied as he unwrapped his sandwich and took a bite.

Angeal and Zack stared at the younger male in total disbelief.

"Pretty good?" Angeal echoed, bewildered.

Zack cracked a grin. "You're kidding, right?"

"Nope," Cloud replied calmly, sipping his cola.

"Complex Statistical Analysis is one of the hardest courses ShinRa even has," Angeal remarked. "And Seph's probably one of the hardest teachers they've had. Not the best combo."

"Next to Hojo, of course," Zack added. The worst teacher, which was common knowledge throughout ShinRa, was Dr. Hojo, the batshit crazy professor who taught the advanced level science courses. Thank Gaia Cloud didn't have any of his classes. But everyone Cloud knew who was unfortunate enough to have Hojo as a teacher hated the class with a burning passion.

"Why did you take such a hard class, anyway?" Angeal asked. "Seph's gonna drill math into your head until your brain explodes."

"Because I like math," Cloud explained, feeling a little defensive as his favorite subject was being targeted. "And I think it's fun."

Zack and Angeal stared at him like he'd just said watching paint dry was fun.

"Right," Angeal said, giving Cloud an odd look. "Of course it is."

"Yeah, Cloud," Zack laughed, patting his friend's spiky blond hair. "If you say so."

Cloud smirked. "Just because _you_ almost failed Trig, Zack…"

"Hey!" Zack's eye's bulged as he turned to face Angeal. "Why did you _tell_ him that?" But Angeal only snickered as the other dark haired male pretended to swipe at him from across the table.

"_Anyway," _Zack shot the older man another glare before turning his attention back to the Cadet. "How are you going to get caught up in that class? It's not like the semester's just started."

"I'm going to come down during study hall and he'll help me get caught up," Cloud answered, feeling a light blush creep over his cheeks as he remembered the morning's events.

"Just you and Seph? That sounds like it would be worse," Angeal commented, laughing. Cloud didn't exactly agree, but he wasn't about to bring it up. "Just make sure you pay attention or else it'll get real ugly. He _hates_ that."

Zack nodded his head in agreement. "Hey, when is your study hall, anyway?"

"Eighth period," Cloud answered, glancing up at the clock.

"Your last class? That sucks. At least it's not for a few more hours," Angeal replied, crossing his arms.

"Yeah," Cloud answered, even though he really wasn't all that disappointed about it.

* * *

Cloud took a deep breath, and then knocked lightly on the door.

"Come in," he heard the General call from inside. Cloud let himself into the classroom and found Sephiroth seated as his desk, his back towards the Cadet. Slowly he shut the door and made his way over to the silver haired man. He tried to keep his cool as the General turned to face him.

"Ready to get started?" The older man asked, his bright emerald eyes burning into Cloud's. "Let me get my notes. You can have a seat." Cloud picked a spot by the man's desk (to make things more convenient for Sephiroth, of course) and got out his notes and textbook.

Sephiroth returned a moment later with a notebook and his own teacher's edition of the textbook and pulled up a seat right next to Cloud. The blond tensed as he realized the closeness of the General to him. Sephiroth didn't seem to notice.

"The first Unit is just a review of the previous course," Sephiroth explained as he flipped open his book. "But I don't think that's necessary for you, judging by your scores from last year. That's quite impressive."

"T-thank you, sir," Cloud stammered as he briefly made eye contact with the other man before shyly looking back down at his notes.

Sephiroth gave a small smile and continued. "Anyway, you've missed almost three units' worth of material, so it'll take at least a few weeks to get you caught up with the rest of the class, depending on how efficient your working ability is."

Cloud fought back a grin as he answered his teacher. "Yes, sir." Being personally tutored by the man of his dreams in his favorite subject? He couldn't believe his luck.

"Right, then. Let's get started." Sephiroth opened his notebook and began the first lesson.

Since the General had kindly (or just for convenience) given Cloud copies of the notes he had missed, he had to jot down relatively few things in the margins as Sephiroth explained the chapter. He had heeded his commander's warning and swore he wouldn't once take a trip to la-la-land during the tutoring, but as eighth period went on, it became increasingly hard not to. It seemed almost a sin not to acknowledge the man's beauty when Cloud was right next to him. His handsome features, the waterfall of silver hair that cascaded down his shoulders, the way the fabric of his black sweater stretched across his beautifully toned upper body…

"Strife? Is this making sense to you?"

Cloud snapped out of his daydream to find the General staring at him, his head slightly tilted.

"Y-yes, sir. I understand it," Cloud stammered, his cheeks flushed. "I'm sorry, sir. Please continue."

Sephiroth gave the Cadet an indecipherable look before continuing the lesson. Cloud mentally slapped himself on the forehead and promised himself he wouldn't zone out again. He didn't want to waste the man's precious time, after all.

The rest of the period went without any other incident, thankfully. By the end, Cloud had learned all of the material from the first two chapters. He and his teacher were equally surprised by this – it had taken Sephiroth about a week to cover both chapters in his classes. But the General taught in such a way that seemed to fit Cloud's learning style perfectly – which, in Cloud's opinion, added more to the man's already irresistible appeal.

"Make sure you finish those practice problems for tonight," Sephiroth instructed as Cloud packed away his things. "And don't worry about the homework assignment from class today. I don't expect you to know how to solve those problems yet."

"Yes, sir," the Cadet answered, disappointed that his time with the General was about to end. He tried not to let it show.

Sephiroth smiled at Cloud, who felt his knees weaken. "Excellent work, Strife. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Thank you, sir," Cloud replied as he made his way over to the door.

Right before he left the classroom, he snuck another quick glance at his teacher. Sephiroth was busy packing up his things at his desk and hadn't seemed to have noticed the gaze. Cloud smiled to himself and then headed down the hallway. Today just couldn't get any better; he'd been spending all of his study halls with the General, and then later Zack was throwing a party that he would definitely be showing up for. What could be more perfect?

But before he went anywhere, he was finishing those practice problems.

* * *

Sephiroth couldn't sleep that night.

He stared blankly up at the ceiling as he lay in bed, lost in his thoughts. Today during eighth period, the blond's actions had confirmed it. He had caught the little Cadet practically gaping at him again. And Strife wasn't the first – the General had had quite a few students behave in a similar manner, and it was all for the same reason – the infamous teacher crush. At least, that's what he thought was going on with Strife. But that wasn't what had Sephiroth so restless.

The real reason was that he actually _liked_ the attention from the younger male.

But _why?_ When he had learned of other students having an interest in him, he had simply ignored it and hoped it would blow over. It hadn't affected him in the slightest, since he didn't feel the same. He was their General and teacher – he felt that his duty was to do what he could to make them into successful individuals, and nothing more.

But with the Cadet, it was different somehow. And the part that had Sephiroth so unnerved was that couldn't figure out why.

He rolled over in bed and attempted to make himself comfortable, adjusting his pillow and pulling the sheets further over himself. It was too late at night to be worrying about such things. And besides, he was so exhausted that he probably wasn't even thinking straight. So, as the weary General drifted off to sleep, he was sure of one thing:

Whatever was going on, it would just have to wait until tomorrow.

* * *

By the end of the week, Cloud had thoroughly learned all of the lessons from the entire first unit. He was burning through the material with a rapid speed, thanks to his incredibly focused learning ability. But he realized that the faster he learned, the less time he would have with his beloved General. He would still see the man for class every day after the eighth period tutoring sessions were over, but it wouldn't be the same. Nonetheless, he was grateful for his well-needed daily dose of Sephiroth.

The rest of the week had passed normally, save for when the General would sometimes accidentally bump Cloud's arm with his elbow, or when their knees would touch briefly before the blond would quickly move his leg. It didn't seem to affect the older man, but each time Cloud's heart nearly jumped out of his chest at the contact.

One great outcome of the study sessions (besides the _obvious_, of course) was that Cloud and Sephiroth had formed a great student-teacher bond. Sephiroth knew how to explain math problems to Cloud in a way that he could completely understand without the slightest bit of confusion or unclearness. They exchanged greetings in the hallways and even had friendly chats in the beginning of class, much to the surprise of the other students and teachers; Sephiroth wasn't known to be the friendliest person in ShinRa. And so what if the other Cadets called Cloud a teacher's pet? Screw them. Cloud knew that most of them were just jealous that he got to spend so much time with the legendary hero of ShinRa.

But, for what it was worth, the General and Cadet had a sort of awkward friendship by the end of the first week, which was enough to thrill Cloud beyond belief. So one afternoon, when Sephiroth suggested that they use lunch period for tutoring as well, the blond was ecstatic.

"I don't mean to keep you from socializing with your friends," Sephiroth explained after class. "It's just that I was recently told about several meetings taking place during eighth period for the entire next week, and I'm afraid I can't miss them. And we can't afford to lose that much time."

"I understand, sir," Cloud replied, fighting to hide his excitement. Could this have worked out more perfectly? Now he got to see his beloved once more during the day. And, to make things even better, Zack was away on a mission and Commander Hewley had to temporarily switch lunches for the week, so he would have been by himself anyway.

Sephiroth gave a warm smile. "I'll see you during lunch, then."

Cloud gathered up his books, thanked his General again and left the classroom, nearly skipping down the hallway. He couldn't believe his luck – he'd be spending his time with the General three times a day! He could hardly concentrate on anything else. During his English class, he zoned out so much that Commander Rhapsodos had stopped class twice to call him out on it, and even whacked him over the head with a book. But Cloud didn't care; he only had one more class until he'd see his lovely Silver General again.

* * *

"You _yelled_ at Strife?"

"He was being completely inattentive," Genesis frowned as he collapsed onto to the couch in the teacher's lounge. "And he had this giddy look on his face the entire class."

Sephiroth couldn't help but crack a grin. "I have students like that too, but I don't clock them in the head with 600-page textbooks."

Genesis narrowed his eyes. "But he was slowing the class down. I had to cue him at least five times on the lines he was supposed to be reading."

The silver-haired man smirked. "Isn't your class reading _Loveless_ now? I don't blame him."

Genesis scowled. "Just because _you _don't appreciate good literature..," he huffed. "You're such a math nerd."

The General raised an eyebrow. "Good thing, or else you would have failed Calculus back in second year if I hadn't done all of your homework for you."

The redhead cracked a smile. "Touché." Then he sighed. "But anyway, I really don't know what's gotten into Strife lately. He's not usually like this."

Sephiroth had a pretty good idea of what it was, but he wasn't about to say it.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! ^^ Please keep an eye out for Chapter 2, which should be coming soon-ish. Thanks again!**

**I have a drawing I did of nerdy Cloud up on deviantART, the link's on my profile if anyone cares =P**


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